TonyK
CibbuanoMatch preview: West Coast v Western Bulldogs
September 16th 2006 02:03
WEST COAST EAGLES V WESTERN BULLDOGS
WHERE & WHEN: Saturday September 16 at Subiaco at 5.30pm (WST)
TV & RADIO: TV: Channel 10 -- Melbourne (7pm), Adelaide (6.30pm), Perth (6pm), Sydney (7pm), Brisbane (7pm). RADIO: ABC, K-Rock, MMM, NIRS, 6PR, 5AA
HEAD TO HEAD: West Coast 20, Bulldogs 12, Drawn 1
HEAD TO HEAD AT THIS VENUE: West Coast 7, Bulldogs 3, Drawn 1
LAST TIME: Western Bulldogs 10.13 (73) d West Coast Eagles 8.16 (64) at Subiaco, round 13, 2006
TAB SPORTSBET ODDS: West Coast $1.30, Bulldogs: $3.30
BETFAIR: West Coast $1.36, Western Bulldogs $3.65
What a difference one-point makes.
As we all know West Coast went down to Sydney by the narrowest of margins in a classic qualifying final at Subiaco Oval last Saturday night.
The washup has seen coach John Worsfold cop a barrage of critcism from the media and general public for his man-on-man tactics which according to some circles cost the Eagles a home preliminary final.
Having said that, West Coast dominated possession against the Swans, had more entries inside their forward 50 and had four more shots at goal.
So in reality had the Eagles made the most of their opportunities this discussion would be a moot point.
It was the same old story against the Swans, with the Eagles again struggling to find a consistent marking target up forward while Barry Hall and Michael O'Loughlin combined for nine majors.
Quinten Lynch managed two for the night and dropped several gettable marks.
Lynch is a key for West Coast, especially against an undersized Dogs defence.
Of bigger concern for Worsfold would be the form of Chad Fletcher and Michael Braun, with the duo managing a meagre 14 possessions each last Saturday night.
For so long the aforementioned players have added depth to an imposing West Coast midfield, but Braun has managed no more than 15 touches in his past three outings and the Eagles will need him to stand up and provide support to Ben Cousins and Chris Judd.
The Eagles have made four changes for tonight's clash, with Brent Staker, veteran Drew Banfield, NAB Rising Star nominee Mark LeCras and Jaymie Graham making way for Andrew Embley, Daniel Kerr, Ashley Hansen and Mark Seaby who was a late withdrawal against the Swans.
Graham would consider himself especially unlucky after playing every game this season.
Those are some big-name inclusions for West Coast, and perhaps no bigger than Kerr.
His ability to get the football in confined spaces was sorely missed against Sydney and along with Andrew Embley he adds some depth to the midfield.
However, Hansen's inclusion is the interesting one.
There is no questioning his importance to the Eagles side, with the team having an unblemished record when he plays.
However, the Eagles forward hasn't played since round 19 so his fitness would be a concern and I wouldn't be suprised if Staker or Graham are a late inclusion.
Meanwhile the Bulldogs fairytale story continues to roll on.
The Doggies had 16 players making their finals debut against Collingwood in front of 80,000 plus fans at the MCG last Sunday and handled the occassion with aplomb.
Coupled with the fact that they recorded a win over the Eagles at Subiaco back in round 13, the Bulldogs will go in with plenty of confidence.
As expected the Dogs have gone in with an unchanged line-up, and with club great's Scott West and Rohan Smith celebrating the 300-game milestone and a preliminary final berth on the line, there is plenty to play for.
How big of an impact the milestone's play is questionable- you can't play any harder than you already do, especially come September.
When the Dogs beat West Coast by nine points back in round 13 it was with hard run and clean use of the football, and a similiar display tonight will be needed to record an upset win.
While it has been the younger pups of the Bulldogs side that have been raved about it recent times, its the veterans that hold the key for a win.
Midfielder Scott West is arguably in career-best form and the 7-time best-and-fairest winner's uncanny ability to get the ball at close quarters and feed the likes of Farren Ray, Lindsay Gilbee, Adam Cooney and co will be crucial.
Another key cog in the Dogs machine is All-Australian captain Brad Johnson.
The last time these two sides met Johnson kicked four and could have easily had eight to his name.
Johnson was the only multiple goalkickers in his side's upset win over the Eagles, so shut him down and West Coast will go a long way to recording a win.
You would expect fellow All-Australian Darren Glass to line-up on Johnson in what shapes as an intriuging contest.
The Bulldogs will hold no fears going into tonight, nobody expects them to win and all the pressure is on West Coast to win and avoid bundling out of the finals in straight sets.
Both sides boast impressive midfields that would be the envy of the 14 other clubs in the competiton.
The deciding factor will be which forward line is capable of converting their opportunities, with both sides so evenly matched through the midfield.
Expect the Dogs Cinderella story to come to an end tonight.
The Eagles simply have too much to lose and you wouldn't expect them to lose two home finals in succession.
With such big-name inclusions West Coast should get over the line in a tight encounter. Eagles by 26 points
WEST COAST
B: B.Jones, Glass, Wirrpanda
HB: Waters, Hunter, Stenglein
C: A.Embley, Cousins, Braun
HF: Chick, Hansen, Butler
F: Kerr, Lynch, Armstrong
FOLL: Cox, Judd, Fletcher
I/C: R.Jones, Rosa, Seaby, Selwood
EMG: Banfield, Graham, Staker
IN: A.Embley, Kerr, Hansen, Seaby
OUT: Banfield, Graham, Staker, LeCras
WESTERN BULLDOGS
B: Griffen, Harris, Morris
HB: Wight, Hargrave, Gilbee
C: McMahon, S.West, Ray
HF: Smith, Johnson, Eagleton
F: Robbins, Grant, Giansiracusa
FOLL: Street, Cross, Cooney
I/C: Boyd, Minson, Montgomery, Power
EMG: Addison, Faulkner, Skipper
IN: -
OUT: -
Field umpires: Kennedy, Allen, Schmitt
WHERE & WHEN: Saturday September 16 at Subiaco at 5.30pm (WST)
TV & RADIO: TV: Channel 10 -- Melbourne (7pm), Adelaide (6.30pm), Perth (6pm), Sydney (7pm), Brisbane (7pm). RADIO: ABC, K-Rock, MMM, NIRS, 6PR, 5AA
HEAD TO HEAD: West Coast 20, Bulldogs 12, Drawn 1
HEAD TO HEAD AT THIS VENUE: West Coast 7, Bulldogs 3, Drawn 1
LAST TIME: Western Bulldogs 10.13 (73) d West Coast Eagles 8.16 (64) at Subiaco, round 13, 2006
TAB SPORTSBET ODDS: West Coast $1.30, Bulldogs: $3.30
BETFAIR: West Coast $1.36, Western Bulldogs $3.65
What a difference one-point makes.
As we all know West Coast went down to Sydney by the narrowest of margins in a classic qualifying final at Subiaco Oval last Saturday night.
The washup has seen coach John Worsfold cop a barrage of critcism from the media and general public for his man-on-man tactics which according to some circles cost the Eagles a home preliminary final.
Having said that, West Coast dominated possession against the Swans, had more entries inside their forward 50 and had four more shots at goal.
So in reality had the Eagles made the most of their opportunities this discussion would be a moot point.
It was the same old story against the Swans, with the Eagles again struggling to find a consistent marking target up forward while Barry Hall and Michael O'Loughlin combined for nine majors.
Quinten Lynch managed two for the night and dropped several gettable marks.
Lynch is a key for West Coast, especially against an undersized Dogs defence.
Of bigger concern for Worsfold would be the form of Chad Fletcher and Michael Braun, with the duo managing a meagre 14 possessions each last Saturday night.
For so long the aforementioned players have added depth to an imposing West Coast midfield, but Braun has managed no more than 15 touches in his past three outings and the Eagles will need him to stand up and provide support to Ben Cousins and Chris Judd.
The Eagles have made four changes for tonight's clash, with Brent Staker, veteran Drew Banfield, NAB Rising Star nominee Mark LeCras and Jaymie Graham making way for Andrew Embley, Daniel Kerr, Ashley Hansen and Mark Seaby who was a late withdrawal against the Swans.
Graham would consider himself especially unlucky after playing every game this season.
Those are some big-name inclusions for West Coast, and perhaps no bigger than Kerr.
His ability to get the football in confined spaces was sorely missed against Sydney and along with Andrew Embley he adds some depth to the midfield.
However, Hansen's inclusion is the interesting one.
There is no questioning his importance to the Eagles side, with the team having an unblemished record when he plays.
However, the Eagles forward hasn't played since round 19 so his fitness would be a concern and I wouldn't be suprised if Staker or Graham are a late inclusion.
Meanwhile the Bulldogs fairytale story continues to roll on.
The Doggies had 16 players making their finals debut against Collingwood in front of 80,000 plus fans at the MCG last Sunday and handled the occassion with aplomb.
Coupled with the fact that they recorded a win over the Eagles at Subiaco back in round 13, the Bulldogs will go in with plenty of confidence.
As expected the Dogs have gone in with an unchanged line-up, and with club great's Scott West and Rohan Smith celebrating the 300-game milestone and a preliminary final berth on the line, there is plenty to play for.
How big of an impact the milestone's play is questionable- you can't play any harder than you already do, especially come September.
When the Dogs beat West Coast by nine points back in round 13 it was with hard run and clean use of the football, and a similiar display tonight will be needed to record an upset win.
While it has been the younger pups of the Bulldogs side that have been raved about it recent times, its the veterans that hold the key for a win.
Midfielder Scott West is arguably in career-best form and the 7-time best-and-fairest winner's uncanny ability to get the ball at close quarters and feed the likes of Farren Ray, Lindsay Gilbee, Adam Cooney and co will be crucial.
Another key cog in the Dogs machine is All-Australian captain Brad Johnson.
The last time these two sides met Johnson kicked four and could have easily had eight to his name.
Johnson was the only multiple goalkickers in his side's upset win over the Eagles, so shut him down and West Coast will go a long way to recording a win.
You would expect fellow All-Australian Darren Glass to line-up on Johnson in what shapes as an intriuging contest.
The Bulldogs will hold no fears going into tonight, nobody expects them to win and all the pressure is on West Coast to win and avoid bundling out of the finals in straight sets.
Both sides boast impressive midfields that would be the envy of the 14 other clubs in the competiton.
The deciding factor will be which forward line is capable of converting their opportunities, with both sides so evenly matched through the midfield.
Expect the Dogs Cinderella story to come to an end tonight.
The Eagles simply have too much to lose and you wouldn't expect them to lose two home finals in succession.
With such big-name inclusions West Coast should get over the line in a tight encounter. Eagles by 26 points
WEST COAST
B: B.Jones, Glass, Wirrpanda
HB: Waters, Hunter, Stenglein
C: A.Embley, Cousins, Braun
HF: Chick, Hansen, Butler
F: Kerr, Lynch, Armstrong
FOLL: Cox, Judd, Fletcher
I/C: R.Jones, Rosa, Seaby, Selwood
EMG: Banfield, Graham, Staker
IN: A.Embley, Kerr, Hansen, Seaby
OUT: Banfield, Graham, Staker, LeCras
WESTERN BULLDOGS
B: Griffen, Harris, Morris
HB: Wight, Hargrave, Gilbee
C: McMahon, S.West, Ray
HF: Smith, Johnson, Eagleton
F: Robbins, Grant, Giansiracusa
FOLL: Street, Cross, Cooney
I/C: Boyd, Minson, Montgomery, Power
EMG: Addison, Faulkner, Skipper
IN: -
OUT: -
Field umpires: Kennedy, Allen, Schmitt
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